“The American Gangster” recently announced his retirement from mixed martial arts competition after testing positive for two banned substances during the UFC 175 pre-fight drug test.

“Bones” appeared on Monday’s edition of and spoke about the Jon Jones news.

“I watched him on UFC Tonight,” Jones said. “I thought he handled it very responsibly. I really admired him being vulnerable and telling the world about the situation with his wife and things like that.”

Ironically, Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen have a history of bad blood against each other. It began during the supposed UFC 151 fight card scheduled in September 2012. It was an event headlined by “Bones” and MMA legend Dan Henderson.

“Hendo” was forced to pull out of the fight due to an injury, which made Chael Sonnen decide to step in and volunteer himself as replacement with only a week’s notice. “Bones” did not agree with the fight, forcing Dana White to scrap the entire card altogether.

“The American Gangster” then went on to begin a word war with “Bones”, calling him an “entitled brat.”

The two men did end up fighting each other at UFC 159 in April 2013, where Jon Jones emerged victorious via first round TKO.

But after Chael Sonnen’s reaction, Jon Jones was gracious enough to laud his former rival.

“I’ve been very vocal about not respecting steroid users and guys who cheat,” the reigning UFC light heavyweight champion said of the Jon Jones news. “But Chael almost gained an exception with the way he handled it and the way he was so honest and upfront with the fans and all the fighters about the whole situation.”

“It was never good for the sport to see something like this,” he added. “But in a way, it was a win for Chael because he got some things off his chest and just be real about everybody.”